Check mate!
by La Amatista Mariposa
Summary: Yuko Yuhi is a japanese orphan who was just recently adopted into the United States. All she wants is to go home to her lovely Japan...That is, untill she is enrolled into the a prestigious boarding school with their own set of guardians. please R&R!
1. Chapter 1: Arival

AN: After two years, I've found this story again. I hope to publish more chapters on it, but first I'm going to go through and fix some grammar mistakes and the like. Please enjoy what I have so far!

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'_Goodbye…goodbye…goodbye.'_

_The only words that people seemed to say today. Tears, hugs, and in one person's case, a farewell kiss._

'_I'll miss you…You'll come back right?' He asked, confusion and sorrow in his eyes._

'_I can't say.' was her reply_

"Miss! Miss!" an unfamiliar voice cut into her dream.

Yuko opened her eyes to come face to face with the flight attendant. Even though she didn't know the woman, her Japanese face and voice was welcoming. It was almost as if her moving to America was a horrendous nightmare.

"We will be landing in America shortly. Please return your seat to the upright position and fasten your seat belts." The woman told her in Japanese.

'So it wasn't a nightmare. I really did leave everyone behind.' Yuko thought to herself. Reluctantly, she sat her seat up and buckled the seat belt.

While she waited for the plane to land she made sure her Cello was still fastened to its seat. After all, the people she considered her family gave it to her for Christmas.

Gingerly, Yuko moved her carry on to her lap. She made sure no one was around before opening it.

Inside sat three brightly colored eggs surrounded by cloth and other soft things. "Don't worry you three. We'll be getting off soon." She whispered to them.

Within the next hour, Yuko was standing in the Los Angeles air port on the outside of a big crowd. Cameras were going off and lots of people where talking at once.

Then she saw them. Her "new family." There was a man, a woman, and two boys. Her "Mother" was smiling, but the smile didn't touch her eyes. Her "Father" was talking to the people with the cameras and microphones.

With a sigh, she adjusted her bag on her shoulder and gripped the heavy cello case tighter. She used said cello as a wedge between the people in order to get to the middle, to the family that was going to take care of her.

"Excuse me. Excuse me. Excuse…ow!" someone stepped on her foot.

Finally, she broke through the crowd and was face to face with the group of four. "My name is Yuko Yuhi. Are you the Burbine family?" she asked, butchering their last name.

Frustration riddled her face. She hated to speak English because of the heavy Japanese accent she had.

"ごめん. I don't speak English very well." she muttered, wincing. She had accidentally said sorry in Japanese.

"Here she is! The new addition to the Burbine family!" the man boomed.

"Excuse me, Mr. Burbine! What made you and the missus decide to adopt and why a Japanese orphan as opposed to anywhere else?" One guy said. He had a note pad in one hand and a microphone to Mr. Burbine's mouth.

"No questions for now. I would like to show Yuko to our house now." was his reply.

Next thing she knew, Yuko was being whisked away by men in black suits to another plane.

This plane was different. It was open and comfortable. Despite this, Yuko was miserable. Being a foster child in Japan made her hate traveling. All she wanted to do was stay in one place for more than a few months.

"You might get your wish this time!" came a voice from her bag. Without taking her eyes off the window, she opened the top to let a small girl with teal hair out. "They're not considering adoption, they _are_ adopting you!" she said excitedly.

"Megumi-chan, I don't want to be here. I don't want to be in America and you know it." Yuko hissed back to her guardian character in Japanese.

Megumi suddenly looked like she was going to cry. Megumi's tears always made Yuko feel guilty since she was the character born from her dream to bring beautiful music to the world.

Another head poked out from the bag, but she was silent for a second. "Hey, Megumi. You know you're not very good at talking Yuko into thinking something's for the best. That's Suren's job."

The one that spoke now revealed herself. She wore a purple ninja robe with a black sash around the middle. Her hair was such a dark purple it looked almost black. Finally, her eyes where a mysterious shade of purple.

"B-but…Lyn! Suren's asleep and you know she doesn't like to be woken up!" Megumi said, panicked. Tears began to well up in Megumi's eyes.

Yuko made a tsk sound. "Not even Suren could convince me this is good for me." she spat

"Who ya talkin' to?" asked the younger boy. He suddenly leaned over the top of Yuko's chair to see if anyone was there.

Yuko, shocked and surprised that anyone could hear her above the wisper she tried to speak with, sunk lower in her seat be eye to eye with the boy. He had sapphire blue eyes that seemed to glitter like the jewel they were colored after. His hair was the color of honey and his skin was sun tanned to a golden brown.

"Gomen'nasai, I don't understand." she told him. The surprise in her dark brown eyes began to fade.

He rolled his blue eyes a little. "I asked who you are talking to." He spoke slowly and pronounced every syllable.

"I know what you asked. I still don't understand. I wasn't talking to anyone." she replied, stumbling over some of the words.

"But I heard you talking to someone in some language. It would talk then you would reply. Who where you talking to?"

She had to hand it to the kid, he was persistent. Looking quickly to her left seemed to distract the kid. While he was distracted, Yuko grabbed his shoulders and flipped him over the chair onto her lap.

"Can you see them?" she whispered softly.

The young boy looked like he was on the verge of over loading. How could the small Japanese girl do something like that? The blood was rushing to his head now, since he was upside down. After a bit of a struggle, he managed to slide into the empty seat next to her.

"Are you crazy? If you wanted me to sit next to you, you should have asked!" he shouted.

"Can you see them?" she asked again, annoyance touching her voice.

"See who?" he replied, annoyance on his face.

"Us!" a voice growled beside him.

The boy turned his head so fast it cracked. He came face to face with a rather angry floating girl with wolf ears and a matching tail. She had shining silver hair and glowing red eyes. The red trimming on her white kimono where the same shade as her eyes.

"Oh! Suren, you finally up!" Megumi said happily, coming out of her hiding place. Lyn slowly followed the teal haired chibi out their hiding place.

"All the screaming woke me up." Suren snapped. She was not a morning chara…or a day chara for that matter.

The adolescent gasped and was about to scream, but Yuko put her hand over his mouth so he couldn't.

"So you can see them…Anata no namae wa nani desu ka? What is your name?" she asked him calmly. Her long black hair slid over her shoulders as she leaned over him.

The boy stopped struggling under her hand to just stare at her, taken off guard. He took the hand that was covering his mouth away so he could speak.

"The name's Ethan Connor Burbine." He said, eyes narrowing slightly. "You're weird."

An angry mark suddenly appeared on Yuko's forehead. _'Cheeky little…'_she thought to herself.

"That was rather rude." Megumi told him scornfully. Ethan's eyes shifted to Megumi. He snatched her out of the air, making her scream and squeal.

"Just what are you?" he thought out loud.

"Ah! Yuko-chan, don't let him hurt me!" Megumi cried.

"She's a Shugo Chara." Yuko answered his question. She eased his fingers off of the green-haired girl.

"A what now?" Ethan asked, a little dumbstruck. Yuko had to think very hard to describe what she was.

"A Guardian Character. Your would be self. They are the kind of person I wish to be, so they are here to help me become who I want to be." Yuko explained while she rubbed her eyebrows in thought. She motioned to the three floating characters.

"You want to be really scary?" Ethan asked, pointing to Suren.

"N-no!" She stuttered as her cheeks turned red. Sure Suren could be scary and kinda mean, but that was only when she was woken up when she wanted to sleep.

Ethan just laughed at her reaction. His smile could cause cavities with how sweet it was. "What was your name again? I couldn't hear it at the airport." he said, wiping tears away from his eyes.

Yuko was captivated by him. He was an incredibly cute kid. He reminded her of her brother back in Japan.

"Yuhi Yuko. It is a pleasure to meet you." She replied. Her words where accompanied with a heavy Japanese accent as well as Japanese tradition.

"The pleasure is all mine, Yuhi. Since my parents adopted you, wouldn't your last name be Burbine, not Yuko?" He asked, curiosity swimming in his eyes.

Confusion filled Yuko's features. What was he talking about? "My last name is Yuhi. And I would never change it to Burbine." she said stubbornly. She mutilated the family's name again.

"But you said Yuhi first, so wouldn't that-"

"It's Japanese custom to say the family name first and the given name last." Yuko cut in before he could say anymore. "How old are you Ethan-kun?" she hoped to distract him before he could say anything more on her name.

"Coon? What does that mean? Did you just call me a raccoon?" He asked.

"Another Japanese custom. No, it does not mean raccoon. Please answer the question." She replied, eyebrow twitching. He was exactly like her brother.

"I'm nine and a half." he replied, still thinking about the kun thing. "What does coon mean if it doesn't mean raccoon?" he asked.

Yuko sighed. It was going to be a long ten hours till they got to D.C.


	2. Chapter 2: Home again?

By the time the plane landed, Yuko knew everything she needed to know about America, the family, and Ethan himself. Ethan had fallen asleep on her shoulder and she fell asleep with her head on top of his.

They were awakened by the older boy.

"Wake up you two! We're home." He was a too loud for Yuko's liking. Not only did he wake her up, but he woke Suren up as well.

A shroud of impending doom covered the little wolf girl as she hung over his shoulder. He, on the other hand, seemed oblivious to her. Yuko just settled for a sleepy glare.

"Come on, Ethan. Wake up!" He continued to poke and shake his little brother till he opened his eyes.

"Aw Xander…I was havin' a good dream, too." Ethan wined as he yawned.

"Xander? Do you have another brother Ethan-kun? You told me your brother's name was Alexander." Yuko asked, completely confused.

"My real name's Alexander, but I like to be called Xander. It's more unique." The older boy said. His eyes had more of a purple tone than Ethan's, but their hair was the same. "It really is a pleasure to meet such a beautiful girl such as you." He added.

"You're acting again." Ethan pouted. He turned to Yuko whose eyebrow was raised. "He's not usually this nice, or flirty."

"Oh really?" Yuko said a smug grin on her face.

Despite the smile on Xander's face, the twitch of his eyebrow and the vain in his forehead let Yuko know he was annoyed.

"Look squirt, I wasn't being flirtatious, I was being nice and complemented her. And I am too nice!" He growled at his brother. It was obvious he was trying to keep his composure but was failing miserably.

"Exhibit A. See, I told you he wasn't always nice." Ethan tried to be calm and expressionless, but he couldn't help but grin.

"Only with you, squirt." Xander replied, scooping his brother up from the seat and slinging him over his shoulder. Ethan giggled childishly and Alexander grinned. Smiling seemed to be contagious because even Yuko grinned.

Everyone seemed to be content…everyone except the guardian characters.

"He ignored me…" Suren hissed. Her crimson eyes narrowed and her nose scrunched up.

"He might not be able to see us like Ethan-kun." Megumi squeaked.

"No. I can smell and sense another character, and it's not any of you. It belongs to the tall one."

"Then how come I can't sense it?" Lyn asked.

"I don't know. Maybe he's like you. He can mask his presence to others. But of course I can, because that's my ability. I can sense a character for a mile around." Suren replied with a huff.

"You don't need to remind me…" Lyn said irritably.

"Calm down guys. Besides, even if he didn't ignore you, he wouldn't be able to understand you. They don't understand Japanese." Yuko said. She stood up and slung her bag over her shoulder. Her three guardian characters flocked to her and sat upon her head or continued to float around.

With cello in hand, she exited the private jet to a relatively empty airport. It was nothing like the LA airport she started her American adventure at. _'That's exactly what this is…an adventure. Nothing permanent.'_she thought to herself as she followed the family.

Ethan and Xander stayed close to her the whole time.

"Welcome to Washington D.C.! The capitol of the U.S.A." Xander proudly announced when they walked outside.

"Why do you live here again?" Yuko asked.

"Cuz' dad's the Attorney General. He tells the president what's legal and what's not." Ethan replied thoughtfully.

"Not like he always listens anyways." Mr. Burbine laughed once they were in the car. Yuko jumped at the sound of his voice. It was deep and soothing, but it held a rather cold undertone.

"So Yuko, how are you enjoying America so far?" Mrs. Burbine asked her. Her voice was the same as her husband's; sweet and inviting, but slightly impersonal.

Yuko thought for a second. To be honest, she found it quite uneventful. But she didn't want to offend anyone with her feelings.

"I don't believe I've been here long enough to make a proper decision." She replied. To her, that was neutral ground. No one should be offended and she didn't have to sugar coat anything.

"I regret not being able to spend more time with you. You'll be starting school at the Rosewood Academy here in D.C. It is a boarding school, so you'll be required to live on campus. Of course, our home isn't that far from the school if you wish to visit. All you'd have to do is make a quick call and I'll be sure to send a car." Mrs. Burbine said. She smiled as she produced several papers and pamphlets from her ridiculously large purse and handed them to her adopted daughter.

Yuko pretended to read them. The only reason why the pamphlet was so big and the papers where so long was because they used unnecessarily huge words. It was way too confusing to trouble her mind with.

Mrs. Burbine blathered on about the school and its prestige. It seemed like her kids had learned how to drone out her talking. Her husband seemed to be doing the same.

"What a windbag." Lyn sighed. Yuko shot her a quick glare from the corner of her eye. Even though she knew the lady could not hear her, Yuko still found it rude for Lyn to say what she had been thinking. At least she kept it to herself.

After a quick drive, they arrived at a large, brown brick house. From the outside, it looked like it had two floors and an attic. The front steps where made of the same brick as the house. The double door had to be at least twelve feet high and five feet wide. The patio was covered by an extension of the roof. Over all, it was very beautiful.

"Welcome to your new home." Mr. Burbine said with his arms spread out. It looked like he was going to hug the house.

'_I'll decide if it's home or not.'_she thought to herself.

Xander carried her cello up to what would be her room.

"Now close your eyes!" Ethan said, blocking the door. An exited glow lit up his sparkling blue eyes.

"Is that a command? You know I'm older than you by six years." she reminded the young boy she was the more authoritative person by poking his head a few times.

Xander had to laugh at that. "Would you do that to me if I told you to close your eyes? There's a surprise in there from all of us." he said, violet eyes sparkling as well.

Outnumbered (even her Chara where on their side), Yuko finally closed her eyes and allowed herself to be led into the room.

Ethan led her past the bed (she knew it was a bed because she stubbed her toe on one of the feet) and to what she thought was the middle of the room.

"Okay, open your eyes!" they both said in unison.

Slowly, she opened her eyes to a room that was the size of her old living room. It even had a T.V. in it!

She swung her head left and right to take in every detail of the room. Everything was grand and a little over the top. Never before had she ever lived with such a wealthy family.

After the amazement of what was in front of her wore off, she couldn't help but feel like she was missing something.

"What do you guys think?" she asked her chara in Japanese.

"It's huge! There are so many places I could hide and ambush Suren or Megumi!" Lyn cried, zooming all over the place.

"That bed looks comfortable…" Suren drooled. Yuko guessed she was still tired. "Ahem, these are the most wonderful living conditions we have ever lived in, but don't let it go to your head." she added as she floated around to get a better look.

"Aiyee!" Megumi squealed.

"Ethan, let Megumi go!" Yuko snapped. Ethan shook his head and held up his hands to reveal their emptiness.

"Well if you didn't…then…" Yuko slowly turned around to observe the final wall. Her eyes grew as wide as saucers. All she could do was stand motionless, mouth hanging open.

The back wall, opposite from her bed, was covered end to end with all kinds of musical trappings. There were three book cases of different sheet music. In between them were many different instruments. They ranged from brass to string.

In the very center of the arrangement was a double bass. The pegs shined like the polished silver it was. The body was a beautiful reddish brown. It looked like it was sent from heaven because of the way the light was hitting it.

Megumi was zipping around everything, praising the instruments and glancing at the sheet music titles. "This is paradise!" She exclaimed.

"That empty stand is for your cello." Xander pointed to the empty slot to the right of the bass.

"This can't seriously be all for me. I can't even play most of those!" Yuko was hardly able to form a sentence, let alone in English. She was surprised that he was even able to understand it at all.

"It's a welcome home gift. And I'm sure you can learn. The adoption papers said you where really talented in the music field." He winked at her.

Tears sprang up in her eyes. This wasn't fair. These people made it really hard to hate being in the situation she was in.

"Xander, look what you did! Your ugly face made her cry!" Ethan shouted at his brother.

"Huh, what? I did not!" Xander was too shocked and taken back to shout.

All Yuko could do was laugh. She laughed like she had never laughed before. Maybe she could survive living here for awhile.


	3. Chapter 3: Rosewood Academy

Just as Mrs. Burbine had promised, the next day was the first day of school.

"When does school begin?" Yuko asked while yawning. Ethan had woke her up half an hour earlier to eat breakfast. The two Burbine children plus Yuko where now sitting in the back of a limousine on their way to the school.

"Oh, about nine o' clock." Alexander answered.

Yuko froze in mid stretch. It wasn't even six in the morning. Why did they have to be there so early?

Her thought must have shown on her face because Xander quickly threw in the fact that she was new and needed to get settled first. "Plus, there's some people I want you to meet." He finished. This didn't please Yuko in the least.

"It is 5:45 in the morning. How can moving into a dorm and meeting people possibly take more than an hour?" She asked angrily. Her eye was twitching from a combination of annoyance and sleep deprivation. This earned her a nervous shrug from Xander.

"You'll just have to see for yourself." He yawned. He followed up with a look that said 'case closed.' It was the kind of look a parent gave a young child.

The rest of the car ride was silent except for the radio that softly played something that sounded like elevator music.

Once the trio got to the school, Yuko stormed out of car, refusing to let anyone help her carry her cello. Stubbornly, she walked up to the front steps before she was stopped by Xander.

"What's wrong?" His voice sounded strained. He gripped her free wrist to prevent her from walking off.

"We are not a morning person." Suren growled. The little wolf girl looked like she could kill someone if it wasn't for the fact she was only a few inches tall. She hovered right in front of Xander's face, glaring daggers at him.

To Yuko's surprise (and Suren's satisfaction), the older boy's eyes widened in alarm, but he quickly regained his composure. His violet-blue eyes continued to stare angrily into Yuko's. "Well?" he again acted like he hadn't seen Suren.

If anyone thought she was stubborn when she was well rested, they hadn't seen Yuko when she wasn't. "Let go of my hand!" she demanded. Her voice was surprisingly demanding. Why should she answer his question when Suren already had? She completely forgotten he couldn't understand Japanese.

After a second of hesitation, Xander released her wrist from his grip. He looked very irritated and angry. Maybe he wasn't a morning person either?

Ethan entered the scene during the tense silence that followed the scuffle. "What are ya' standing around for? Shouldn't we go an' help Yuko find her dorm?" He asked innocently.

There were a few minutes of awkward silence. Yuko continued to glare, but eventually turned back to the school that towered over her. "I'm not a morning person, especially not when I'm suffering from jet lag." Her words where strained. She didn't want to admit how hard it was for her to be in a new country on the other side of the world.

Gently, Xander eased her hand off the cello handle and took it from her. Ethan took her other hand and looked up at her with his large blue eyes. "It's okay. Xander's never been nice in the morning." He told her. "Heck, he's always a bit cranky." He added, whispering in her ear.

After a little bit of prompting, the three entered the large building. Getting her schedule, finding her dorm, and meeting her roommate did not even take an hour; just as Yuko predicted.

"What else did you have in mind?"

"I want you to meet some of my…friends."

Yuko scowled slightly. She wasn't even sure she liked Xander, so why would she want to meet his friends? Regardless of how she felt, she went along with Xander anyways. They did have around two hours to kill. After dropping Ethan off with his friends, Xander led her to a pair of large double doors that where painted white and gold. The door handles looked like golden plants had suddenly sprouted from the door.

"Is the whole school like this? Flashy and showy?" Lyn asked, her voice full of boredom. She hadn't found any place that interested her yet.

"I don't know." Yuko mumbled. She couldn't help but fiddle with the scarf around her neck. It was one of the few things she had brought over from Japan, and it reminded her of home.

"What the bloody hell have you dragged in now?" A voice angrily said. Xander had opened the door when Yuko was preoccupied. The voice had a British accent that was comparable in thickness to her Japanese one.

Looking up, Yuko found the room to be just as elaborate as the door. Fancy cream colored drapes hung in front of the huge windows. These windows where almost as tall as the wall they hung on, as well as being relatively skinny. The carpet was a plush red color and sank just a little bit when someone stepped on it. Lovely indoor plants took up residency in the corners of the room. A couple of couches where positioned by the plants against the walls. A silver and gold refrigerator was cleverly hidden by one of the plants.

However, none of this caught Yuko's attention. A large, round table sat in the center of the room. It looked more like a donut because the center was cut out. It looked as if the table was made of latches that could allow someone to walk into the empty space.

Surrounding it was a set of six elaborate chairs with strange markings carved into them. The chairs sat on differing platforms that raised some higher than others. All but two chairs where filled.

"Oh, don't mind him. He's always grumpy!" A blonde girl said, gesturing to the boy that had spoken when the doors opened. "We've been expecting you!" She seemed to address Yuko directly…in a rather indirect way.

"Anwer my question, Mr. Bourbine." The grumpy brit spat. He completely ignored Yuko, who had taken to hiding behind Xander.

"Guys…this is my new sister. She's one of us." Xander announced. He stepped to the side and gently put and arm around Yuko. She quickly looked each person in the face and then turned her attention to the ground. What had Xander meant by "one of us?"

The announcement seemed to stir up a little bit of excitement from the blonde girl and not very much from the British boy. The two teens sitting in the most elevated chairs showed the most interest in what was said.

"Let her into the center. She can introduce herself." The boy said. With that said, or decreed as it sounded more like, Xander lifted a section of the table up and gestured for Yuko to walk through.


	4. Chapter 4: The Proposal

Hesitantly, Yuko walked into the center of the table. All eyes were on her, and she didn't like it. An awkward minute passed. Then a second one. Then a third. Finally, the girl to the left of the boy who had invited her into that torturous ring spoke up.

"So what's your name?" She asked. Yuko immediately focused on her. The girl had dark hair that was cut to her shoulders. Her skin was also very tan, like she spent a lot of time outside. Over all, she had a genuine pleasant look about her, but a glint in her eye warned of something else; something dangerous.

"Um…Y-yuhi Yuko." The young Japanese girl replied. Her current situation was making her feel quite withdrawn.

"How long have you been in this country, Yuko?" The third girl in the room asked. Yuko's attention was drawn to her. It shocked her that someone knew that Yuko was her first name without her having to explain her names. This girl was smiling, though she looked distant. Spacey even.

"One day." Yuko replied. Technically, she had no idea if one day was an accurate statement. The different time zone made it hard for her to keep track of the time that passed.

"Xander, what is this?" The British boy broke in. He voice was loud and harsh; it made Yuko feel even smaller. "We're busy enough with the beginning of the new year. We don't need to be distracted by you and your stupid pranks!"

"This isn't a prank! She has them. I've seen them. It's not my fault that none of you are asking the right questions." Xander shouted back. He and the British boy had glaring contest before Yuko tried to speak up.

"I am not sure what is going on. Them?" Yuko said shyly. She nervously wrung her hands behind her scarf.

"I'm sorry. We're being rude." The boy in the tallest chair said softly. "My name is Cody, and this is the student council room. Welcome to Rosewood Academy." He gave a small smile. It looked sincere enough to Yuko. "Would you mind telling us about yourself? Your dreams, ambitions, hobbies…anything you want to share."

Everyone quieted down and looked at her, waiting. Although she wouldn't admit it, Yuko didn't want to say anything. She was never very good at talking about herself. It felt like bragging to her, and bragging was what rude people did. On top of that, she felt it was a little rude to ask so much of her without at least giving her their names. After taking a nervous gulp, Yuko did her best to answer Cody.

"W-well…My name is Yuhi Yuko, but you can call me Yuko." She started. "Although, you already knew that…" Yuko's voice grew weak and quiet. She really hated being in front of so many people. "U-umm…"

"Just take a chance!" A voice growled in her head. "_Bark, Growl, Howl!_"

A strange power over came Yuko. Her mind cleared and she began to feel confident. Her posture became more up right with her shoulders squared and her head held high. Her attitude even flared a bit. It was ridiculous that these strangers had thrown her into the spot light like that. Normal people meet in a hallway, or at least tried to pretend they were equals. Sticking her in the center of their round table made it seem like they were interrogating her. Staring at her was downright rude, and she hated rude people. Sitting in elevated chairs gave off the impression that they were better than her. She wasn't obligated say or do anything for them. Not until she let them know she wasn't going to be treated like that.

"I do find it a little rude to ask me such personal questions without properly introducing yourselves first." She said. A mild form of aggression laced her words. She folded her arms across her chest. Perhaps they would get she wasn't going to say any more about herself until she at least had their names.

There were a few minutes of stunned silence before three of the strangers and Xander began to talk.

"Did you see that?"

"Yeah, her personality totally flipped."

"Do you think it's a trick? It could be a trick"

"Shut up, idiot. You can't fake something like that."

"Ahem." Yuko cleared her throat. "I'm still here."

"Sorry! My name is Alice Lessure. I'm the Historian on the council. I take care of all the official records of the council and all the other student organizations. My dad was a representative from Louisiana, but he didn't get re-elected this year. Thankfully, the school agreed to let me continue going to school here." The distant looking girl said. She pointed to herself when she spoke. "The grump over there is Arthur. His dad's the British ambassador. Though I don't know why he would choose to go to school here…" she looked like she was suddenly consumed by her thoughts, as if the issue seriously concerned her.

The British boy, Arthur huffed indignantly. "I'm putting this down as 'pointless chatter' for the records." He scribbled something down in a notebook in front of him. One of his hands was tangled in his orange colored hair. When he was done, he glanced over at Yuko. "Pleased to meet you, Miss Yuko. I am the secretary." He more or less grumbled.

"I sincerely apologize, Yuko. I should have introduced myself before questioning you." The girl who had first spoke to her piped in. "My name is Serena. I'm the Vice-President. Xander is the treasurer and Cody here is the President. Would you mind answering our questions now?" She asked politely.

Yuko looked at each person in turn. Finally, she took a small breath before talking. "I play the cello and I've started playing the upright base last night. I want to be able to play the cello on a professional level." She simply stated. "My turn. Do you normally question every new student? Because I find it hard to believe you have done this for every student here at the academy. Also, Xander mentioned seeing something earlier. What was he referring to?" She demanded. She already had an idea as to what the answer to the second question was. But why would these people be interested in her guardians?

Serena looked at Cody for an answer. He stared intently at the Yuko for a good five minutes at least. The young Japanese girl began to feel uncomfortable again. "No, we don't normally greet every student individually. We usually have an orientation assembly for that. But you are…special. At least Xander says you are. He was cryptically referring to your guardian. Your sudden change of character proved his claims."

"We didn't want to scare you, though. Most people we suspect of having a guardian really don't. Or they do and get very defensive of them." Serena explained.

"The latter have a tendency to run after we offer them a position on the council." Arthur added. He was too busy scribbling down more words to look up. "Especially when we describe the responsibilities that goes with it." He added.

"Why would they? You're just a school organization. There's nothing really scary about that." Yuko said. She had been a part of a few clubs back in Japan. There was nothing scary about having some responsibilities inside the groups. Unless she had to speak in front of a crowd. That was the scariest thing that could ever happen.

"Uh…well, the job description is a little more than just being a member of student council. I'm surprise you didn't ask what your guardians have to do with anything. Wait, you were probably going to ask that next." Alice said. "We should have said something sooner. You see, we all have a guardian."

Yuko's eyebrows shot upward. If they all had guardians, why hadn't she seen anything? More importantly, why hadn't Suren or Lyn said anything? Both of them were usually pretty good at sensing other guardians.

"Wait, did you just say 'guardians' as in plural?" Arthur asked Alice.

"Yes. Xander referred to them as, well, 'them' and Mystique said she'd have three." Alice replied. "And you're English. How did not pick up on that? I mean, seriously. The language is named after your country. The place it came from!"

"Let's cut to the chase." Cody raised his voice ever so slightly to catch everyone's attention. "We, the student council, have a sworn duty to protect the students of this academy. Their dreams, their ambitions, their everything. Will you help us Yuko?" Cody asked.

"There is a recent vacancy we've been trying to fill. You can be our publicist!" Alice chimed in.

"What do you say, Yuko?" Xander decided to finally speak up.

For the fourth time, the room was quiet and all eyes were on Yuko as everyone waited for an answer.

* * *

_AN: And almost a month later, here it is! The next chapter. Huzzah!_  
_Man, I am so bad at this "regular updates" stuff. I'll try and get the next one out soon. I don't want to leave you hanging for too long ;)_  
_In the mean time, please review!_


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